


A Chance Encounter

by kittyface27



Category: One Piece
Genre: Discovery, Gen, Humor, One Piece - Freeform, One-Shot, Prison, acelu brotherly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2019-08-08
Packaged: 2020-08-13 04:22:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20168074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittyface27/pseuds/kittyface27
Summary: After Ace get's defeated by Blackbeard, he's held at a temporary prison for a little while, and there he meets a quirky, young marine that surprisingly is related to Ace!





	A Chance Encounter

**Just a little one-shot I wrote in between my longer fanfics that I'm trying to finish. Enjoy~**

Ace sat in the jail cell in the lower level of the marine base stationed in the grand line. He felt utterly stupid for getting caught. His stupid narcolepsy really got him in trouble this time. Was there medication for that? It needed to stop, since his crew would laugh at him for getting caught. He didn't want to risk this happening twice.

He had been on his way to find Teach, the traitor from his own division, but when he landed on one of the islands in Paradise, he left his striker at the docs and went to ask around for any clues as to where Teach had gone off to. He seemed to be slipping past Ace's fingers through each island he searched on.

And Teach almost always left a mess behind him. Destroying cities and towns, killing or injuring random people and marines or pirates. He really was a bastard, though Ace didnt feel to bad for the marines. Those people are lock cockroaches. They never end.

And that brings him to his current predicament. He'd been in a restaurant in Alabasta, eating to his heart's content, until a marine named Smoker came in, and immediately recognized Fire Fist Ace.

Then they began to battle… until Ace passed out cold on the hard ground, sleeping heavily. Man, what a stupid way to get caught. And because of his damn condition, he was chained to a wall with sea stone cuffs, and in a smelly and dirty place. You'd think a marine base would have nicer quarters, though this was the jail.

While he was cuffed, he was able to feel cold, and it was cold down there. And he was hungry, too. No one had come to feed him. And he was also thirsty. The wall he was chained against hurt his spine, and it was thoroughly uncomfortable. He'd rather be chained to the floor than the wall. God, this sucked.

He had gotten caught yesterday, and since then had mostly been left alone, to his surprise. But he wasn't overly worried He knew Whitebeard would come soon. After all, the ship had been heading to Paradise anyways. Ace just left first. And he wasn't too far from the red line. When they came, it would be great to leave this shithole, and never come back. He was honestly very lucky to not be in a more secure prison. Maybe the marines just got lazy or over confident. It would take maybe two to three weeks for the Moby Dick to come and get him. He would try and wait patiently until then. But he was never good at being patient, and if he got an annoying or rude guard, then he'd be even less patient and just be an ass without meaning to. He sighed at the situation.

He was jerked from his thoughts when a teenager in a marine's outfit walked into the hall and towards his cell. Ace frowned at him. The kid was beaming at Ace. He didn't look like a marine. Most of the lower ranking marines in this kid's outfit were weaklings and scared of pirates like Ace. This guy just seemed not scared and also _happy _at the same time. The fuck?

He stopped right in front of Ace's cell. Ace didn't see any fear on this kid's face. And why was there someone so young in a marin's outfit? And why was someone so young and small selected to guard a pirate with a bounty over 500,000,000 berris? It was just reckless.

"Hi!" he said loudly. "Your name is Ace, right?" he asked. Ace just stared at him. Wouldn't the kid know his name not only from his infamy but also him being locked in this prison? Word must have gotten out by now, so the world knew about him being caught. What a disgrace!

Ace stared at him some more in surprise, before he grew angry. He was hungry and tired and thirsty and would prefer to just be left alone. But he couldn't have counted on that at all. Even if he was chained and weakened, he was still unpredictable and dangerous.

"Uh, yeah. Who the hell are you?" Ace snapped. Was this kid just toying with him? Trying to seem nice or something and then try to hurt him or some shit? The kid just continued to smile and sat down in front of the call a couple yards from where Ace was chained to the wall. He looked relaxed as he sat cross legged and rocked back and forwards happily.

"I'm Luffy," Luffy cheered. "It's nice to meet you. I'm supposed to be your guard. They want me to hit you and stuff, but I'm not really into that," the kid said simply, waving his hand dismissively. Ace just stared at him in bewilderment. "So I'll just watch you and make sure you don't do anything _suspicious._" Then he chuckled to himself.

"It's not like I can do anything with these cuffs on anyways," Ace replied, still not knowing what to make of this marine. This very odd marine.

"Haha, yeah sea-stone cuffs suck. Make you all sleepy but then you don't want to sleep and want to run, but it's like when you fall into the water and can't move and stuff." Then he laughed again.

"You a devil fruit user?" Ace asked curiously, not feeling any ill intent from this kid. Luffy. Seemed like a simpleton. Maybe Ace could convince him to let him out. Of course, Ace might kill him depending on how he would react if Ace ever got out of his cage. Out of these damn cuffs so he could burn this place to the ground and wait for the Whitebeards to come pick him up with some dignity.

Luffy pulled on his face and stretched it out to the side unnaturally far. The fuck? What kind of fruit is that?! "Guess what it is!" Luffy said after his cheek snapped back into place.

Ace thought for a moment. "Elastic?" he guessed.

"Close! No, I'm made of rubber. People think it's weird. But I can do lots of stuff with it. But not indoors. I could probably fit through your bars, too. I'll show you when it's time to bring you food."

Ace couldn't help but smirk at the boy. What a weird one. "Rubber… hmm. That's a unique fruit." Ace was going to test how stup-_clueless- _this boy was. "Guess what mine is." Ace watched in amusement, wondering what Luffy's answer would be. Probably something inaccurate. Based on what little time Ace had been around the kid, he just seemed like an airhead.

"Ehh… Well, your name is Fire Fist Ace, right? So fire hands?" Luffy guessed innocently. Ace chuckled in disbelief.

"Close. Made of fire. 'Fire fist' is the name of one of my attacks," Ace explained, finally relaxing against the hard wall behind him. "How do you not know this?"

"Hey, I call out my moves, too! Oh, I don't really pay attention that much. It's boring being a marine. Nowhere to go or do anything. Everyone is stuck up! I always wanted to be a pirate, but my grandpa forced me to be a marine. He was always telling me to be a marine. 'Bwahahaha!' all the time and punching me in the head with this fist that hurts even though I'm rubber," Luffy rambled. Ace's eyes had widened.

"Was this punch called 'the fist of love'?" Ace couldn't believe this. Luffy nodded and asked how Ace knew the name. "Garp? That's your grandpa's name, right?" Luffy nodded again. Ace looked down. "I always knew he had a grandkid…" he mumbled. "Always talked about him…"

"Ne, do you know him?" Luffy asked, cocking his head to the side. "Why are you whispering? Is it a secret?"

"Did Garp ever talk about another kid he was a grandpa to?" Ace questioned, not answering Luffy's questions, but he moved on from that pretty easily. Luffy put his finger to his chin and looked at the ceiling.

"He talked about some kid name Ass. I always thought it was a weird name. Who names their kid Ass? Poor guy," Luffy said somewhat sadly, feeling bad for this 'Ass'. But Ace surprised him by bursting out into real laughter. Laughter he mostly reserved to his pirate family. He was growing on this kid, who was pretty much like a brother if Garp really was his grandpa's name.

"What's so funny?"

"Well, Luffy. That kid's name was not Ass, it was Ace. It was me," Ace said amused with Luffy's bug eyes and jaw dropped. Ace assumed Luffy was in shock, but case on the smile, he clearly wasn't upset with the news. Not at all.

"REALLY?!" Luffy shouted loudly. "But I'm happy you aren't stuck with the name Ass. I would be sad for you if it was your name. But, why didn't we meet before?" the kid asked, already moving on from the revelation. "That's cool! We're like, brothers or something."

Ace shrugged. Well, attempted to. What happened was just an awkward move that hurt his shackled arms. "I don't know. Even if you asked, he probably wouldn't answer. Does he know I'm here?" Ace asked, curious and looking forward to question the old man about Luffy, hopefully Luffy being in the room as well. Well, if he was able to get there before Whitebeard did.

"I don't know. Probably not. He's in the New World for some reason. Sounds like a scary place. I mean, monsters are cool and everything, but the weather is really bad I heard. I like storms and stuff, but I'm not good with heat. My skin literally starts to melt," Luffy babbled happily. He seemed very comfortable being with Ace. "And it smells bad, too."

Luffy then began to ramble to Ace about a heatwave one summer in his home island. But then he switched back to talking about the New World and what would probably happen to him if he ever went there.

"I've been to the New World. You get used to everything pretty soon," Ace replied. "How old are you, Luffy?" He looked pretty young. Maybe fifteen or sixteen. He was definitely younger than Ace. For the first time ever, Ace had a _little _brother. It made him smile, even though he'd probably not be spending much time with the boy once his pirate crew comes to get him.

"I'm seventeen. How old are you?" Ace was surprised that he was older than he looked. Ace answered that he was twenty, and turning twenty-one pretty soon. Man, if he'd met Luffy long ago, Sabo would have been a big brother, too.

"Hey, Luffy. You mind taking these shackles off?" Ace asked, hopeful the boy would uncuff him. Of course, Ace wouldn't hurt him. Might even take him with him if the man could.

"I can't. I'll get in trouble and you will, too. Hey, you have a strong captain right? Whitbread?"

"Whitebeard, and yeah. But it would still be nice to not be cuffed," Ace replied calmly. He was disappointed that Luffy shook his head no.

"When your captain comes, I'll uncuff you and you can go with them. I don't want you destroying the island or anything while I'm here. Plus, you'd have to wait around and get caught and tortured or something while you had to wait somewhere." Luffy nodded with a grin, like he was proud of himself for sounding smart.

"Well, I guess that's true. But you know what would be really nice? If you swapped these cuffs for regular ones. I promise I won't try to escape, but having regular handcuffs would be much more comfortable." Luffy thought it over for a moment before he nodded and got up to run off, his boots clacking on the stone floor.

Ace smiled, liking his younger brother. He wished they could have grown up together. Then Ace would have not been so lonely when Sabo was killed. And he felt bad for Luffy. Garp had wanted Ace to be a marine, too, but Ace was able to get away before he was able to force him to become one, like he'd done to Luffy. It made him scowl. His own grandpa had taken away Luffy's dream future. It make him sick that someone had their dreams crushed like that.

And it made him hate Garp even more. Why had he never introduced Luffy to Ace? Sure, he bragged about the kid being strong for his age, but maybe, if the old man had introduced Luffy to Ace, Ace could have made sure Garp didn't stomp over Luffy's dream and force him into his own. It was selfish and cruel, and it made Ace absolutely livid. And glad he'd escaped before Garp could just drag him to the marines.

Ace assumed Luffy was such a young marine because Garp took him while he was still young to make sure he wasn't old enough to set sail by himself. After all, Ace wasn't ready to leave until he was seventeen. This meant Luffy was probably brought to the marines as a fourteen or fifteen year old. Surely it was his tie to a marine hero that he was in the academy so young.

They didn't teach Luffy much about loyalty if Luffy would easily release Ace. Ace thought that Luffy was only unloyal here because he wasn't happy. To the marines, Luffy leaving would be desertion. But to Luffy, it'd be freedom.

Luffy clacking boots came back, echoing down the hall before Ace could see him. He came into view and held a ring of keys and a pair of regular cuffs that looked identical to the sea stone ones that Ace was trapped in.

"Watch, I'll show you," Luffy said with a grin as he forced his rubber body through the thin bars, squishing himself to fit. Once he was in the cell, he said, "Tada! Cool, huh?" he asked as he walked to Ace and fumbled with the keys to find the right ones before unlocking them. Ace immediately felt better, and stayed still as Luffy cuffed his brother to the wall again. But it was much better now than it had been.

"Yeah. Weird, too. Can you fit through everything? How do your powers work?" Ace asked curiously. Luffy hid the cuffs in the vent on the ceiling, answering while he did so. He was excited to talk about his powers, since everyone else just thought it was a useless fruit. Luffy was never able to show any of them since hitting them would be bad and he never had the chance to fight in some action.

"Well, I can stretch really far, and fit in places, and jump really high and I'm bulletproof, too. Though no one shoots me cause I never get to leave the base. Grandpa thinks I'll desert if I get any freedom. It sucks," Luffy complained with a frown as he sat across from Ace's cell again.

This angered Ace even more. He made a decision. He'd set this kid free when Whitebeard wreaks havoc on this damn prison for Luffy. "I'm sure you'll be free someday soon. Well, when my captain and friends come to get me, you'll get to leave, too. Everyone will think you died or some shit."

"Ooh! Sounds like a plan," Luffy said happily. Ace grinned back at him.

The two talked some more until it was time for Luffy to go get his own lunch and bring some back for Ace. The food the man was given was not good. Just bread and some gross looking vegetable soup that Luffy spoon fed him. It was slightly embarrassing for Ace, but if this was the only way he'd get food, then he'd do it and not complain. He did however, want to be released from the wall when it was time for Luffy to go to bed.

So Luffy unlatched Ace's cuffs from the wall and locked them to the latch on the floor so his brother could lay down to sleep.

"I'll see you tomorrow. The night shift guy is a jerk. So just ignore him and go to sleep. He'll get bored if you don't say or do anything back," Luffy said and bid him goodnight, his boots clacking away until Ace heard the squeal of the door hinges and then the slam as it closed.

It was only a few minutes later that a man with strange blond, oval hair stood across from him with a sneer. Like Luffy said, Ace ignored the pathetic insults thrown at him as he started to fall asleep. The last thing he heard was the man mumble how his daddy would would not be happy with how he was handing the prisoner. Well, even if Ace was going to be tortured, without the sea stone cuffs, it wouldn't hurt.

Everyday, Luffy came to watch over Ace and talk to him about anything and everything. Luffy was interested that Ace had been raised by bandits. But he hated them because of what happened with that guy from when Shanks saved him. Ace was openly surprised that the young boy had been so close to powerful yonko. That Shanks had given up his arm to save Luffy. But you couldn't say Luffy wasn't easily likable, brother or not.

"Yeah, Shanks gave me his hat when I was seven and told me to give it back when I'm the Pirate King, but Grandpa wont let me wear it around cause it's from a pirate. I don't think Shanks was a yonko back then. He was so cool! I really wanted to be on his ship, but now I cant even give it back cause I'm not a pirate," Luffy said with an intense pout.

Ace frowned at him. Once again, he felt bad for Luffy. "Well, Whitebeard is going to be the Pirate King, so you gotta go up against him if you want the title." Ace watched his expression, really unsure of what the reaction would be.

Luffy just grinned. "Well, I'll have to be strong enough to beat him if I want to be the Pirate King, won't I?" then he laughed his unique laugh. "Shishishi…"

"Well, I guess that's true," Ace replied. "Wanna know something? Something kinda strange now?" he asked. Luffy nodded his head. "When I first met the Whitebeard pirates, I tried to kill their captain many, many times. And I never could. Never even left a scratch! He's crazy strong. If I werent his son, I'd be scared shitless after seeing his full power."

"Ooh, he's your dad?" Luffy asked. "But, why would grandpa take care of you if you were a yonko's son?"

"Well, I'm his adopted son. Not by blood. What is your dad like?" Ace wondered. What kind of kid did Garp have? Surely not a marine. Luffy looked confused.

"I don't have a dad," he said simply. Ace raised an eyebrow at him

"Everyone has a dad, Luffy. And everyone has a mom, too. But I take it you know nothing about him?" When Luffy nodded, Ace asked, "What about your mom?"

"I don't have a mom," Luffy answered again, that simple voice and look back on his face even though Ace had just told him he had to have had one.

"Well, I'll take that as a no. But at least you have a grandpa. My birth mom and dad were both dead before I could even remember them," Ace told the boy. He wondered why he was being so open with Luffy. He was still almost a complete stranger, even though they both knew many things about each others past and personalities.

"Oh, that's sad," Luffy said truthfully. Ace just shrugged and said, "Well, it is what it is."

"Hey, what is your cook like?" Luffy asked, changing the subject easily. "Does he make yummy food? I really want a personal chef who would make me anything I want. Well, after you free me, I'll make sure I have a real cook. A really good one!

"I dont get fed much here. On Dawn Island, I ate a lot of meat all the time. Makino would make me lots of food, thought she didn't go hunt the big animals in the forest," Luffy babbled. Ace's eyes widened, though he shouldn't be surprised that they'd lived on the same island. And when Luffy told him the name of the place he grew up, Ace found it amazing that his brother had been living so close to Ace and the bandits. Fate was always a surprise.

Ace couldn't help but smile around Luffy. He was just so cheerful, even when talking about how he was trapped in a life he didn't want to have. Compared to the dreary surroundings, Luffy was like the sun in this dark place.

Ace was beginning to get impatient every day when there was no sound of attack or the feeling he'd get from his crew as they got in the island and to the base. He didn't get to see what the island or base was like since he'd been asleep when he was dragged away. This narcolepsy attack was an intense one.

By the time Ace had been in the cell for two weeks, he was easily irritated with everything. He had snapped at Luffy a couple times, not meaning to, and it made Luffy give a hurt frown. But he didn't leave, and Ace always apologized sincerely. But Luffy easily forgave him and went back to whatever they were doing, since Luffy locked the door of the jail area so that he could go into Ace's cell and play cards or board games that he snuck in with him without getting caught..

The security was very lax if they left Luffy to guard a very strong prisoner and also rarely check up on them. Maybe it was because they thought Luffy was disposable and therefore it wouldn't be a big blow if Ace somehow killed him. It pissed the man off.

He was beginning to become very possessive over Luffy. He hated the thought of others ordering him around, or forcing him to do jobs he didn't want to do, and when the night guard, Helmeppo, insulted Luffy, Ace let loose haki that made the sniveling wimp cower, but not report it. For he was too stupid to notice that Ace could only do this if he wasn't trapped in sea stone. Well, the cuffs looked correct, and he was too afraid to go into the fire user's cell to check.

The day that marked three weeks since his pathetic capture, he finally felt the thousands of people through the ground and thick walls.

"Luffy, they're here!" Ace said excitedly before an alarm started blaring. Luffy jumped up excitedly and, without a second thought, destroyed the cell door with a punch. Ace easily broke the fake cuffs off and grinned, running with Luffy, only for the boy to branch off and run down a different hallway.

Before Ace could ask where he was going, Luffy called, "I'm getting my hat! I'll meet you outside!" and he ran off to get his precious hat.

"Ace!" Marco shouted, Jozu and Izo behind him as he ran down the hall and towards the front door that was open now that the three men were in the hall. Ace could feel the whole base shuddering. Everyone was going to town. "How did you get out-yoi?"

"It's a long story, for now, let's go! But we gotta wait for someone!" Ace had to shout over the blaring noise and the trambles shaking the building. Along with the marines all freaking out outside as well as inside.

"Who? Wait for someone?" Izo asked.

"I'll tell you later!" Ace could barely hear Luffy as he called his name and slingshotted himself down the hall quickly. Only to be stopped in midair by a diamond punch also coated in haki to his face and head. Despite being rubber, Luffy fell to the ground, unmoving but still alive.

"Jozu!" Ace said angrily before running to the prone boy, whose head was bleeding a bit, and picked him up, resting the straw hat on his stomach as he turned and run to the door. The three men he passed looked at their freckled brother with surprise and confusion. But they ran after him, and out into the open.

There were cracks in the island everywhere where the king of the seas went on a rampage, while smiling at the exhilaration, though it was a very one-sided battle. "Ace!" he called happily, glad to see Ace unharmed. And also surprised that he had a limp teenager in his arms.

Ace grinned at him and joked, "Took you long enough!" Whitebeard grinned and laughed loudly, one more quake crumpling the building Luffy had been trapped in for so long. "Luffy, you're free," he said quietly, though Luffy didn't answer. Ace hoped he was okay. Damn Jozu. Why did he have to use both diamond _and _haki on a kid. Who was looking happy, not dangerous or violent. He'd have a long talk with the man later.

With the island destroyed, the pirates boarded their ship leisurely and sailed away. Ace immediately took Luffy to the infirmary, ignoring those questioning the boy in Ace's protective arms.

The nurse came over and, before asking who he was or for the backstory behind their meeting, asked what had happened to him and to put him on the bed. Ace sat on the chair next to Luffy's bed, waiting for him to wake up, for the nurse said it was nothing life threatening. Though she was peeved at Jozu as well. This boy was no older than eighteen. And skinny and gangly. Not exactly a big threat.

While Luffy was sleeping, Ace left the room, only to go out into the hall, where he knew many of the commanders and the captain were waiting, painfully curious.

But Ace smiled at them. "His name is Luffy and he's basically my brother." The others look confused, while Whitebeard laughed. Well this was unexpected.

"How did you find this out? What happened in there-yoi?" Marco questioned.

So Ace began the story. "Well, I was in the jail at the bottom floor, of course, and Luffy was sent to be my guard," Ace said, seeing everyone's glares darken. Ace just laughed. "Well, he wasn't very good at it. Just talked to me the whole time, pretty happily, and we shared stories and I found out that my adoptive grandfather is his biological grandfather.

"He told me he'd always wanted to be a pirate, and that Garp forced him to become a marine. So I told him I'd let him escape with me when you guys showed up. Haha, yeah, he agreed to uncuff me when you guys all came. He even swapped the sea stone cuffs with regular ones to make me more comfortable.

"After all that, a couple weeks, how could I just leave him there? He'd either have died or been punished harshly and never see freedom. So you can understand why I took him with us. I would also like for him to join the crew. Be our littlest brother. He's very nice and enthusiastic, along with being able to defend himself.

"He has the most random devil fruit. His whole body is made of rubber!" Ace paused, and then asked, "So can he join?"

"Well," Whitebeard answered. "I don't see why not." Ace beamed.


End file.
